The “Gangnam Style” phenomenon continued to forge ahead as Psy yet again added more notches to his global superstardom belt. The ubiquitous smash hit won the Best Video award at the 2012 MTV European Music Awards on Sunday in Frankfurt, Germany, while Psy became the first Korean artist ever to perform at the annual awards ceremony.
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Psy performs during the MTV European Music Awards at the Festhalle in Frankfurt, Germany on Sunday. (Yonhap News) |
David Hasselhoff, well known for his role as a lifeguard on the popular U.S. TV series “Baywatch,” presented Psy with his award.
“Can I have a minute? Because I am a rookie, I’ve got a lot to tell,” Psy said in his acceptance speech. “First of all, I like to thank each and everyone, all around the world, who supporting Psy, who supporting Gangnam Style, who supporting my video. I thank you so much; and all the great supports from Korea.”
He went on to express his gratitude toward his family who has supported him throughout his hectic worldwide touring schedule. “Especially my family, I like to thank. All of my family who’s got to live with such a selfish job, with such a selfish guy,” he said. “I would like to appreciate the lady who decided to marry me six years ago. Thank you very much.”
The night’s other winners included: Taylor Swift, who in her debut appearance at the EMAs swept three awards for Best Female, Best Live and Best Look; Justin Bieber, who won Best Male, Best Pop and Best World Stage; One Direction for Biggest Fans and Best New; Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe” for Best Song; Nicki Minaj for Best Hip-hop; David Guetta for Best Electronic; Han Geng of China for the best Worldwide Act; Lana Del Rey for Best Alternative; Linkin Park for Best Rock; and the late Whitney Houston for the Global Icon award.
Psy will return to the U.S. this month where he is scheduled to appear on “Dancing with the Stars,” the “American Music Awards” and “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” on Thanksgiving Day.
According to the Recording Industry Association of America, Psy’s monster hit has officially reached double-platinum status. The “Gangnam Style” music video currently sits at 704,998,985 views on YouTube as of Monday and is inching closer every day to surpassing Bieber’s “Baby” as the most-watched YouTube video of all time. As of Monday morning, “Baby” had a total of 798,694,316 hits.
By Julie Jackson
(juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)
